NCAA Football rice Owls

The most intriguing pro prospect in college football, Rice's James Casey, has declared for the NFL draft. And if you've never heard of Casey and you're not sure why he's the nation's most intriguing pro prospect, let us count the ways:

1. He's 24 years old.
2. He only played two years of college football.
3. He's a ridiculously good all-around athlete, having spent four years as a minor league baseball player and one season as a javelin thrower on Rice's track team.
4. He was so versatile at Rice that he started his first spring practice at safety, then got moved to defensive end, and also lined up at quarterback, wide receiver, tight end, fullback and running back. Oh, and he also played special teams.

And it's that last one that is the most interesting of all, because we really have no idea what position the 6-foot-4, 235-pound Casey will play in the NFL. After setting a Conference USA single-season record for catches with 111 last year, one would assume he'll play wide receiver or tight end, but that's not necessarily the case.

Turkey Legs to Go is FanHouse's complete travel guide for all of the 2008-2009 college bowl games. Here, we cover the Texas Bowl (Houston, Texas), which pits Rice against Western Michigan.

Overview / Matchup: A 40 point thumping at the hands of Tulsa nearly derailed Rice's season, but a six straight wins over C-USA foes has them headed to a post-Christmas bowl, no small feat for such a small school. Meanwhile, Western Michigan, going to a bowl game for back-to-back seasons for the first time in school history, also looks to make a milestone by winning their first ever bowl game. I wish we were joking about that.

Hotels: The St. Regis is arguably the finest hotel in Houston. The hotel staff is meticulous and the atmosphere manages to be sophisticated and elegant without seeming stuffy. The property is about fifteen minutes from the stadium. It might seem far, but in America's third largest city by area, the distance is actually quite reasonable. Situated within the Astro Village complex, near the Astrodome and Galleria shopping complex, the Houston Grand Plaza Hotel offers the best value for your bowl-game weekend. Although the hotel is on the low end of a four-star rating, the Grand Plaza has hearty buffets and great proximity to the stadium. The Reliant Park Inn & Suites is definitely the bargain of the three. The property has rooms for less than US$100 per night and is located right next to the stadium.

Rice quarterback Chase Clement and wide receiver Jarrett Dillard were recruited by former coach Ken Hatfield to be pieces of the puzzle in Hatfield's run-first option offense.

So much for that theory.

A month ago, the Clement-to-Dillard connection became the most prolific quarterback-wide receiver combination in NCAA history, when the tandem hooked up three times in a 77-20 pounding of North Texas. The three scores left the duo with 41 touchdown connections in their careers, surpassing the mark of 39 shared by Louisiana Tech's Tim Rattay and Troy Edwards, and Hawaii's Colt Brennan and Devane Bess.

"It's definitely an honor," Clement said. "We were recruited to play in an option offense, so no, I never expected to break an NCAA record for passing. Jarrett is a great receiver and he knows how to get open and we were able to develop a great chemistry a few years ago. We worked hard, and it's great to share an amazing record like this with a great friend like Jarrett."

The Owls' duo got off to a flying start this season and they haven't showed any signs of slowing, as they continue to shatter school, conference, and NCAA records.